The present invention relates to a customizable face or nose mask for the noninvasive ventilation of patients in general.
It is known that the noninvasive ventilation of patients in general is based on the use of a face or nose mask which is applied by exerting a positive pressure so as to provide the intended seal at the perimetric edges of the mask in contact with the patient""s face.
One of the most severe problems to be overcome is the patient""s tolerance of the machine-face interface, which is constituted by the mask proper.
Due to the considerable anatomical diversity of faces, it is necessary to apply a certain force to the mask in order to ensure its tightness; accordingly, though using of very soft materials, in the long term the pressure on the face leads to more or less severe traumas for the patient.
Markedly better results have been achieved by using masks which are produced starting from a mold formed on the patient""s face; essentially, a mold of the patient""s face is made and a relatively soft material, generally silicone, is then poured onto said mold; the material assumes the anatomical shape of the patient""s face and accordingly minimal pressure is sufficient to provide the intended seal against the face.
Although these embodiments are valid from a functional point of view, they suffer the severe drawback of having an exceptionally high cost, since it is necessary to provide a specific mold to form the mask in each individual case.
These solutions furthermore require relatively long production times; together with their high costs, these factors have led to a limited diffusion of these types of mask.
The aim of the invention is to provide a customizable face or nose mask for the noninvasive ventilation of patients in general, which can be modeled directly on the individual patient without thereby requiring the making of a mold.
Within the scope of this aim, a particular object of the invention is to provide a customizable mask in which it is possible to perform adaptation to the individual patient in a very short time without having to resort to special devices.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a customizable mask which, by way of its particular constructive features, is capable of giving the greatest assurances of reliability and safety in use.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a customizable mask which can be easily obtained starting from commonly commercially available elements and materials and is also inexpensive, thus contributing to the diffusion of the mask among users.
This aim, these objects and others which will become apparent hereinafter are achieved by a customizable face or nose mask for the noninvasive ventilation of patients in general, which comprises a mask body forming at least one surface portion which can be coupled to the face of the patient, characterized in that it comprises, at least at said surface portion, a chamber for containing at least one product without shape memory which can be activated to produce a chemical and/or physical reaction for the transformation of said at least one product without shape memory into a product having shape memory which spontaneously models itself on the patient""s face.
Further characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the description of some preferred but not exclusive embodiments, illustrated only by way of non-limitative example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:
FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of a customizable mask with two separate containers for two products which can be mixed to provide a material without shape memory;
FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the step for the self-modeling of the mask;
FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the mask with the two components of the reaction provided in two separate regions;
FIG. 4 is a schematic sectional view of the mask in which it is possible to introduce a self-modeling material;
FIG. 5 is a schematic view of the mask applied to a patient.